Sotio builds a presence in antibody conjugates

Since discontinuing clinical trials of its IL-15 superagonist nanrilkefusp alfa last October, the Czech biotech Sotio has quietly been doubling down on antibody-drug conjugates. Yesterday brought another discovery deal, this time with China’s Biocytogen. This means that Sotio’s ADC pipeline will now include the fruits of four partnerships, of which the Claudin18.2-targeting SOT102 is the lead, and the only one to have entered the clinic so far. SOT102 came from a long-standing tie-up with NBE-Therapeutics, a company later acquired by Boehringer Ingelheim, after which Sotio struck separate collaborations with South Korea's LegoChem and Synaffix, an ADC specialist last year sold to Lonza. These have given Sotio a number of technologies: NBE-derived assets have a topoisomerase 2 inhibitor payload, for instance, LegoChem uses proprietary beta-glucuronide linkers, while Synaffix claims that its “Toxsyn” technology can apply various linkers and use topoisomerase 1 inhibitor, calicheamicin/nemorubicin or auristatin/maytansine payloads. The latest deal has two aspects, with Biocytogen-generated MAbs being applied to Sotio’s existing ADC tech, and Sotio separately being able to opt into Biocytogen’s own ADC know-how; Biocytogen specialises in bispecific ADCs, uses BCPT02 (topo1) and auristatin E, and last year bought into N-myristoyltransferase inhibitor payloads through a deal with the private UK biotech Myricx.

A snapshot of Sotio's ADC presence

Source: OncologyPipeline.